Machine for the fecundation of plants.



J. M. DENNIS. MACHINE FOR THE FBGUNDIION QF PLANT'S. APPLICATION FILED H1B. ze. 1909.

926,699. Patnted June 29, 1909.

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J. M. DENNIS.

MACHINE FOB. THE FEGUNDATION OF PLANTS.

APPLICATION FILED PEB. 26. 1909.

Patented June 29,1909.

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y .narran sriirns rainurcierren JAMES M. DENNIS, OF CAMBRIDGE CITY, INDIANA, ASSIGNOR, BY DIRECT AND MESNE ASSIGNMENTS,'OF TWENTY-FIVE AND ONE-HALF ONI'l-IIUNDHIDTIIS TO WILLIAM H. ALFORD, TWELVE AND THREE-FOURTHS ONE-HUNDREDTHS TO WALTER S. JOHNSON, AND TWELVE AND THREE-FOURTHS ONE-HUNDREDTHS TO FLETCHER JOHNSON, ALL

OF INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA.

MACHINE FOR THE FECUNDATION OF PLANTS.

Specification 'of Letters Patent.

Patented June 29, 1909.

Application led February 26, 1909. vSerial No. 480,209.

State of Indiana, have invented a Machine for the 1F ecundation of Plants, of which the following is a full, clear, and comprehensivev exposition and specification, being such as will enable others to'niake and use the saine` with absolute exactitude.

My present invention relates to a machine for fertilizing clover seed or the like, and in this connection it may be well to state that" in the production of clover having seed which d will be fertile it is an absolute essential that the pollen of the blossoms be interchanged among the bloom. Ileretoforedependence has been made upon bees to perform this` duty of distributing the pollen, and in some localities this has been found, in most sea? sons, to be 'sufficient but it can not be absolutely'depended upon, while in other localities, most notably in Australia, this `essential requisite has not been accomplished, resulting in an almost total absence lof fertile seeds. Therefore to perform positively by mechanical means that which has heretofore been perfunctorily done by natural means is the primal object of this invention.

A further object is to provide mechanical -nieans vfor the fecundation ol plants, particularly red-clover orthe like, by the employnient of which the pollen of the plants mayA 85 be properly distributed and interchanged, in

order that fertile and healthy seed may be produced. And, 'linally, iny-object, broadly speaking, is to provide a machine for fecundating plants, which means will be strong 40 and durable in construction, positive in its actions and results, easily operated and controlled, which may be manufactured and sold at a comparatively low price, and which will reduce the danger of non-fertilization to an almost negligible minimum.

correlated in the appended claims.

@ne manner for carrying out the objects oil my invention in a practical manner, and

DENNIS,- al

that which in practice has'beenfound to be .the most desirable, is shown most clearly in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a top plan-view of the invention complete. yFig: 2 is a side elevation of the invention. Fig. 3 is a sectional view of the' invention, taken on the line 3- 3 of Fig. 1. Fig. Itk is aV rear elevation of the invention, partly in section, as taken on line 4-4 ol' Fig. 1. F ig. 5 is a detail View showing one of the feeundating fingers alone and in com- .pleted condition, and 6 is a detail View of the skeleton o1' wire portion of one ol' said fingers.

Similar indices denote like parts throughout the several views of the two sheets of drawings.

'In order that the construction and operation of 1n invention niay be more .fully understoot and appreciated I will now take up a detail description thereof in which I will describe the saine as brieily and as coin- .prehensively as I may.

vThe body of my invention comprises a frame, which may be foi-ined square or oblong, saine being preferably foi-ined of metal tubing, the corners being formed of metal elbows, all of said parts being connected rigidly together forming the fraine A. The two side members of this frame are each divided into two equal parts which are connected by T-iittings (L and (1/ as indicated.

Secured in and extending upward from said fittings r1y and a. are the respective standards B' and B which are for the purpose hereinafter set forth.

Connecting the side members of the frame A` are a multitude of wires D which are arranged airequal distance apart; and in like manner connecting the front and the reni' members of the frame A are a multitude of wires C which are placed the saine distance apart as are the wires (l over which they cross. The wires C and l) being at right angles to each other of course cross each other, and\ they are located in the saine plane, thereby forming a multitude of substantinlly square meshes. v

The essential recuisite of this invention are the lingers E wliich hang pendent fi'oin said wires and`these lingers may be made as follows: The body or buse of each of said i are pivotally fingers may consist of a single length of comparatively line wire or the like cut to the proper length and doubled in the center, forming an eye at the loop, and then placed diagonally over an interscci ion of twoof the wires C and D as shownin Fig. 1, after which the two parts of said wire are twisted about cach other on the underside of the screen, formed by the wires C and D, thereby forning an eye through whiclrthe wires (fand D cross each other. Said eye, of each Vof said fingers, should be of such size asrnot to secure the fingers rigidly but such as to allow; them to hang pendent and free to swing. The two douuiwardly projecting branches of each of said fingers E are covered with a fuzzy material F, such as lintior fibrous down or the like, Yvhch before being used is covered with a very fine layer of rubber,

' which can not be shown in the drawings, but

the operation consists in providing a light fhild rubber and then dipping the fingers therein, this forms awaterproof covering yet it does not destroy the-fuzzinessof the material treated but renders it waterproof.

The above described parts comprise the basic portions of my present invention, the other parts herein shown, and which I will now describe, are simply means for carrying the before mentioned parts into effect in a practical and eHicient manner.

The numeral 1 denotes a shaft which is longer than the frame A is wide and over which it extends. e

Numerals 2 and 3 denote the two sides of the auxiliary-frame, which parts are in alinement with and extend forward parallel with the sides of the frame A, but they have no direct connection th( rewith. f

Numerals 4 and 5 denote the two cross members of the auxiliary-frame, the niember 5 being located near the center portion of the members 2 and 3, and the member 4 being located across the forward ends thereof. The rear ends of the members 2 and 3 connected to the shaft 1, as indicated in Fig. 3. f

Rigidly connected around the shaft 1, and

locateda slort distance outward from the connections of the members 2 and'3 with the Y when in position are rigidly connected to the Y respective cams 6 and 7, and thereby indirectly connected to the shaft 1, by the pins Said pins l0 andY 10 and 11, respectively. 11 project inward parallel withthe shaft 1 from the inner faces of the hubs of the wheels and enter apertures therefor formed "shown in Fig. 4.

in the outer faces of the cams 6 and 7, as Said wheels are secured on the axle or shaft 1 by the nuts 12 and 13, respectively, which are threaded onto the denote the f respective right and left handV stirrups,

whose apertures therethrough are formed Vlongitudinali thereof said a ertures beinor C 7 I,

of a cross diameter only slightly more than is thc diameter of the hubs which operate therein, as shown in Fig. 3. By the above it is apparent Jchat when the stirrups retained in their vertical Y(normal) position they Amay be 'moved vertically but not laterally.

"'"Moun'ted by thc pivot-bolts 16 and 17 toothe Vsides of the upper portions of the respective stirrups f14 and 15 are Ythe respectivc bars 18 and 19, each projecting both forward and rearward. .lust in the rear of said bolts 16 and 15 said bars 18 and. 19 are given a quarter twist, in order Ythat thcdorward portions of said bars mayl Yslidably connected thereto by the bolts 22 and 23, which latter are adapted to operate up and down in said slots of the posts 20 and 21. Also secured by said bolts 22 and 23 and connecting the bars 18 and 19 is the elongated foot-bar 24.

The numeral 25 denotes the drivers seat which may beconnected to the auxiliary Y frame as shown.;

.Extending-out from the face of each of the stirrups 14 and 15, at points directly above the upper ends of the aperture therethrough,

are the rollers 26'and 27, each mounted. on its respective bolt 28 and 29, whereby they will ,jrevolrve on the peripheries of the respective cams 6 and 7, as indicated in Fig. 2.

Numerals and 31 denote shafts, or a tongue may be substituted therefor, to pro vide means whereby a horse may be hitched to the machine for the purpose of pulling it over the ground.

Extending back from the center portion of the member 5 is a hanger H, in whichis pivoted. the lever I, the lower rear face of said lever is provided with a notch e which is adapted to iit under the center' portion of the forward member of the frame A, as indicated in Fig. 4, and it is for the purpose hereinafter set forth.

Operation: From the above the operation .of themachine may have been anticipated,

' and it is substantially as follows: The machine may be drawn by a horse or the like to be hitched between the shafts and 31, the operator to be located on the seat 25.

The macliine is intended to be drawn toand-fro over a fieldof blooming clover or the like, which should'occur at such time when the pollen of the bloom is in condition for distribution. t As the machine is moved forward the frame A is gently raised and abruptly lowe ered,lin this instance fourtimes during the distance traveled by the Wheels in lone revo- Said raising and lowering of the frame A is caused by the'cams 6 and 7, which are carried revolubly with the wheels 8 and 9,

. said cams engaging the rollers 26 and 27-and forcing the stirrups upward, thereby causing the bars 18 and 19 to lift up the frame A which is centrally balanced by the standards B and B to which said bars are connected as shown. As'the device moves forward it is apparent that when the rollers 26 and 27 run v off of the points or corners of the cams the frame will drop a limited distance, and by reason ofthe rear spring portions of the bars 18 and 18 the shock will be somewhat absorbed thereby. Said spring portions of said bars will also cause the frame to vibrate somewhat up and down, and by reason of the v manner in which said frame is mounted it will have a limited motion in every direction, which is desirable in order to accomplish the desideratum. 1` i The limits of movement of the frame A,

vertically, is substantially as indicated in- Figs. 2 and 3, in the former it is shown at its highest limit, and in the latter at its lowest.

The movements of the frame Aaesult in causinor the ngers E to be agitated and to venter the bloom, the fuzz-like covering of the may, when so desired, place his feet on the foot-bar 26 and press downward which will, manifestly, cause the frame A to be raised, in order to clear an obstruction or to adjust the frame to une venness of the ground. And when conveying the machine from place to place, when not in use, the notch z may be engaged with the' frame A and if the lever I be then pushed forward it will raise the frame and carry it free of obstructions.

,I desire that it understood that I am not to be limited to the details of construction herein shown and described, neither am I to belimited to the means herein shown foroperating the iingers of pollen distributers, as these may be variously changed and the operation may be accomplished in various ways.

What I do claim, and desire to secure -by Letters Patent of the United States, is-`- 1. A machine for distributing pollen from bloom to bloom inorder to fecundate the seeds thereof.

2. A fecundating machine comprising a yplurality o f ingers adapted to gather and distribute the pollen of plants.

3. A fecundating machine-comprising a plurality of fuzz fingers adapted to gather and distribute t ie pollen of plants.

4. A fecundating machine comprising a plurality of fuzzy fingers or the like adapted to gat-her and distribute the pollen of plants, and means for agitating the fingers.

5. A fecundating machine comprising a plurality of fuzzy fingers or the like, and means for rendering the fuzz waterproof.

That improvement in the art of fecundation which consists in carrying the fecundating material from plant to plant by mechanical means.

7. -A v machine for the fecundation of plants, -including a frame, means for agitatin'g theframe, a series of wires disposed .over theframe, fingers suspended from said wires, means carried by the fingers for carryingl pollen from plantto plant, and means whereby the machine may be conveyed over the ground. v

In testimony lwhereof I have hereunto subscribed my name to this specilication in the'presence of the subscribing witnesses.

JAMES M. DENNIS. Vitnesses:

ROBERT WV. RANDLE,r R. E. HANDLE. 

